Vietnam Targets Newspaper after Reports of Alleged Official Graft
RFA
– 02/10/2015
The government of Vietnam
has decided to withdraw the online operating license of a newspaper it has
accused of “fabricating information” and rescind the reporting credentials of
the outlet’s editor in chief after it ran several articles exposing cases of
alleged official corruption, according to officials.
The move has drawn criticism from journalists who suggested the government is
taking revenge against the Nguoi Cao Tuoi, or The Elderly, newspaper and its
editor in chief, Kim Quoc Hoa, for tackling the sensitive graft issue, when
other official media outlets dare not.
The Ministry of Information and Communications announced Monday that it had
taken the action against The Elderly, including shutting down its website, for
“carrying complaints and petitions, along with baseless analysis, which led to
fabricated information” in violation of Vietnam’s journalism law.
The ministry also accused The Elderly of publishing reports over the past two
years with “false information aimed at defaming and discrediting organizations
and individuals,” deputy minister Truong Minh Tuan told reporters, based on an
inspection of the paper conducted between Nov. 7, 2014 and Jan. 7, 2015.
Tuan said the ministry had requested Hoa be removed from his post and ordered
the Ministry of Public Security to further investigate the situation.
The Elderly had built up a following due to its hard-nosed reporting on several
cases of alleged official corruption, but most recently ran a story which went
viral about wealth amassed through bribery by a former general director of the
government inspection office, Tran Van Truyen.
Truyen was disciplined by his superiors after the article was published, but
when the various assets he had attained through graft remained untouched, the
public became angered by the government’s lack of a stronger response.
Monday’s announcement by the Ministry of Information and Communications angered
journalists, who told RFA’s Vietnamese Service that the move to punish The
Elderly and its editor in chief was an abuse of power.
Pham Thanh, a former reporter for the Voice of Vietnam, said The Elderly had
always been transparent in its reporting and was carrying the torch for other
newspapers that had backed away from exposing official transgressions, such as
Tuoi Tre, Thanh Nien and Tien Phong.
“Why would they punish the whole newspaper if just one person did something
wrong,” he asked.
“Since Kim Quoc Hoa became the editor in chief of the newspaper, The Elderly has
become the number one paper in fighting corruption, power abuse and government
harassment … and many readers love it.”
“I think what the ministry did was illegal because Kim Quoc Hoa has been very
transparent about his news and he respects the law … it’s simply abuse of
power.”
‘A brave newspaper’
Col. Bui Van Bong, a journalist and former head of the People’s Military
newspaper, said he had known Hoa—who is also a military officer that had seen
combat—since he served as editor in chief of a news bulletin attached to the
army’s logistics department.
“Because he is honest, there were many cases that the logistics department
wanted to cover up, but he still revealed them in the news bulletin,” he said.
“He says whatever he thinks is right, no matter who it affects. He is always
willing to bring up whatever he needs to fight for—for justice and equality in
society, for the people and community—not for the benefit of any one
individual.”
Bong said The Elderly had included photos and other examples of “clear evidence”
of Truyen’s corruption in its reporting, “so I believe it told the truth.”
“Not only Truyen’s case, but many other cases revealed by The Elderly, to me,
have shown the fighting spirit and honesty of the newspaper, using the media to
bring news to the people,” he said.
“In a situation where people are hungry for news and transparency in many
aspects of life, I believe The Elderly is a very brave newspaper. They have
always been at the forefront, showing the truth about the bad aspects of
society.”
Hoa on Monday said he was too busy to respond to questions by telephone, but in
a Dec. 29 interview, the editor in chief told RFA that The Elderly had uncovered
or shed additional light on around 2,500 cases of corruption in Vietnam, from
village to central levels of government, over the past seven years.
He said nearly every year the newspaper had exposed at least one or two cases
which had gained a viral following.
Press Freedom in Vietnam
In its annual Press Freedom Index, released in December last year, Paris-based
press freedom group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said that independent news
providers in Vietnam are subject to enhanced Internet surveillance, draconian
directives, waves of arrests and sham trials.
Vietnam is currently the world's largest jailer of bloggers and social media
dissidents, it said, with 34 bloggers currently in detention of some kind.
It cited a decree issued by Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party last year banning
bloggers and social media users from sharing news.
RSF labeled Vietnam an “Enemy of the Internet,” ranking the authoritarian state
174th out of 180 countries in its index.
Reported by Mac Lam for RFA’s Vietnamese Service. Written in English by
Joshua Lipes.